hi5 is a social network that’s actually quite large, ranking third after Facebook and MySpace. They boast 60 million unique users and, with the launch of hi5 Games, intend to grow at a rapid pace.

hi5 Games marks a continuation of hi5’s approach of delivering interactive social entertainment. It’s also a new monetization opportunity using hi5 Coins, their virtual currency that launched in December. Users will eventually be able to utilize hi5 Coins for direct transactions, such as premium content, advanced gaming features, and status upgrades. From an advertising perspective, hi5 will be offering new and immersive ad options on hi5 Games, allowing brands to better engage their target audience.

Unique to other social media sites, hi5 is focused on deeply integrating social context with game content. hi5 Games makes it easy to play with existing friends and make new friends with hi5’s integrated messaging, challenge and invite features. Today, hi5 Games offers users with a variety of casual games in genres such as sports, arcade, strategy and cards. hi5 Games will be actively adding more games to the site every month. Some of the more popular games that will be featured during the hi5 Games launch include Disco Bowling, Pool and Mahjong.

by Brian Solis My pal Frank Gruber of SomewhatFrank and I are running a quick online survey to see how you would end this sentence, “Web 2.0 is…” Yes, we know every classical definition, the history, the arguments for and against it, opinions, and everything in between.